Months after domestic rival G4S lost its £50 million deal to run another Australian detention facility at the centre of a series of human rights controversies, Serco looks set to keep the contract, which was worth more than £450 million in 2013.

The value, however, is set to plunge as Australia is trying to stem the flow of asylum seekers.

Serco and G4S overcharged the British taxpayer for a criminal-tagging contract, which led to a government ban and profit downgrades.

Today’s deal is some rare good news for Serco, which appointed former Aggreko boss Rupert Soames to run it after the tagging debacle.